Mahanadi Coalfields plans Rs 46 billion integrated solar plant

According to reports, Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL), a subsidiary of Coal India Ltd (CIL), has unveiled a plan to invest around Rs 4,600 crore in a vertically integrated solar value chain.

“There is a plan for vertically integrated solar value chain right from silicon manufacturing from quartz to solar modules and a power plant. MCL has already obtained a preliminary report from a consultant for the project,” said Kulamani Biswal, Director Finance, MCL.

Biswal, who was speaking on the concluding day of the 3rd Odisha Symposium, organised by Invest Bhubaneswar, said the plan is in a nascent stage.

Using its mining expertise, the CIL subsidiary is banking on the large quartz deposits in the western part of the state for producing silicon, basic raw material required for solar cell. MCL plans to produce 6,000 metric tonne of silicon that will be sufficient for the installation of a 1,000 mega watt solar power plant.

The plant will come up between Jharsuguda and Sambalpur over a patch of 50 acres. The location is close to raw material source, he added.

Earlier, in a separate investment proposal, Bahrain based angel investor Manoj kumar Tripathy has tied up with Rainbow Creation, a city based animation production studio.

“I will buy into equity of the company so that the money invested in its capital will go for constructing an animation studio,” said Tripathy. He declined to divulge details.

Business consulting firm Frost & Sullivan is coordinating to bring in investors for developing a township spread over 100 acres of land in Kalinganagar area in Jajpur district, said Debasish Patnaik, convenor of the event.